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Our Genealogy Helper

Introduction ...

We have a couple of goals for our Gazetteer:

  • That it be a tool which helps us with planning our trips.
  • We're trying to shape our Gazetteer as a tool to help us understand the community in which our ancestors lived, the community that was part of their daily lives.
  • On our trips, we try to visit those places where our ancestors left their footprints.

By learning about Bolivar (and the surrounding area) during the time that our ancestors lived, we hope to have a better understanding of both their community and its relationship to their lifes. We hope that this tool helps to give us an insight into their world.

As we add data and organize our Gazetteer to help with our family research, we will be adding to this our Genealogical Helper for Bolivar. While we don't have information that is specific to any given person or family, we intend to expand our understanding about where and how people lived.

Neighboring Counties ...

When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties.

For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the west. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the south.

So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties instead of the county in which they lived:  their home county contained property and probate records; the county to the west contained birth and death records; the county to the south contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.

If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.

Bolivar is located in Westmoreland County.

To see how the shape of Pennsylvania's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Westmoreland County: Allegheny, Armstrong, Butler, Cambria, Fayette, Indiana & Somerset.

Below are the counties that are near Bolivar. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Bolivar:

  • Westmoreland County     (The home county of Bolivar)
  • Armstrong County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bolivar, with the one closest to Bolivar listed first.
    • Olivet
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Edmon
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Spring Church
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Elderton
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elderton have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elderton
      • Elderton is located in Armstrong County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 332 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Elderton <2>
    • Orchard Hills
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Orchard Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orchard Hills
      • Orchard Hills is located in Armstrong County
    • Cochrans Mills
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • North Apollo
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Apollo have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Apollo
      • North Apollo is located in Armstrong County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,191 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for North Apollo <2>
    • Atwood
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Atwood have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atwood
      • Atwood is located in Armstrong County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 100 people
    • Apollo
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Apollo have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apollo
      • Apollo is located in Armstrong County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,507 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Apollo <2>
    • Whitesburg
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Whitesburg. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitesburg
      • Whitesburg is located in Armstrong County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Whitesburg
      • From Bolivar to Whitesburg
    • Blanco
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Blanco. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blanco
      • Blanco is located in Armstrong County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Blanco
      • From Bolivar to Blanco
    • Leechburg
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Cambria County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bolivar, with the one closest to Bolivar listed first.
    • Wilmore
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wilmore have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilmore
      • Wilmore is located in Cambria County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 202 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wilmore <2>
    • Brownstown
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Cambria City
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cambria City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cambria City
      • Cambria City is located in Cambria County
    • Lilly
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lilly have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lilly
      • Lilly is located in Cambria County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 873 people
    • Elim
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elim have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elim
      • Elim is located in Cambria County
    • Southmont
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Southmont have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southmont
      • Southmont is located in Cambria County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,048 people
    • Westmont
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Westmont have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westmont
      • Westmont is located in Cambria County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,625 people
    • Johnstown
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Vintondale
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vintondale have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vintondale
      • Vintondale is located in Cambria County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 367 people
    • Daisytown
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • East Conemaugh
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Conemaugh have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Conemaugh
      • East Conemaugh is located in Cambria County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,090 people
    • Dale
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Fayette County
  • Indiana County
  • Somerset County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bolivar, with the one closest to Bolivar listed first.
    • Thomas Mill
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Laurel Mountain Village
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Laurel Mountain Village have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel Mountain Village
      • Laurel Mountain Village is located in Somerset County
    • Jerome
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Jerome have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jerome
      • Jerome is located in Somerset County
    • Tire Hill
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Jennerstown
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Jennerstown have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jennerstown
      • Jennerstown is located in Somerset County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 637 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Jennerstown <2>
    • Davidsville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Davidsville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davidsville
      • Davidsville is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Davidsville <2>
    • Benson
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Benson have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benson
      • Benson is located in Somerset County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 184 people
    • Hollsopple
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Jenners
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Jenners have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jenners
      • Jenners is located in Somerset County
    • Paint
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Paint have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paint
      • Paint is located in Somerset County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 930 people
    • Roytown
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Blough
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)

For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Bolivar, see our County-by-County Page for Bolivar.

Cemeteries Near Bolivar ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bolivar.

This is a new section and is likely to have errors. If you find an error, such as a missing cemetery or we have the wrong name, please let us know. If you know of them, we would also appreciate learning about previous or alternate names.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Bolivar covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Bolivar, with the one closest to Bolivar listed first.

  • Westview Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Westview Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Westview Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Legat Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Legat Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Legat Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Marys Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Marys Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Marys Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bethel Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bethel Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bethel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Blairsville Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Coral Lutheran Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Armagh Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Armagh Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Armagh Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Coles Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Coles Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Coles Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Josephs Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Josephs Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Josephs Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bethel Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bethel Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bethel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Green Mtn. Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Green Mtn. Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Green Mtn. Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Kunkle Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Kunkle Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Kunkle Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (229 more) ...
    • Conrad Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Conrad Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Conrad Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Smathers Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Smathers Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Smathers Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • St. Theresa Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Theresa Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Theresa Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.

Nearby Communities in 1895 ...

We've built the following list with information that came from an Atlas published by Rand McNally in 1895. The Atlas had details such as the population of the community (which appears to have come from the 1890 Census) and whether there was a post office and/or railroad service available. We also indicate if the community no longer exists and is now historic.<5>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Bolivar had a population of 410 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Bolivar had a population of 432 people.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Bolivar, with the one closest to Bolivar listed first.

  • Lockport
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lockport have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lockport
    • Lockport is located in Westmoreland County
  • West Fairfield
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • New Florence
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Grays
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grays have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grays
    • Grays is located in Westmoreland County
  • Hillside
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hillside have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillside
    • Hillside is located in Westmoreland County
  • Clyde
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clyde have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clyde
    • Clyde is located in Indiana County
  • Smith
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Smith have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smith
    • Smith is located in Indiana County
  • Cokeville ‑ Historic
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cokeville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cokeville
    • Cokeville is located in Westmoreland County
  • Heshbon
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Blairsville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Burrell
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Burrell. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burrell
    • Burrell is located in Westmoreland County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Burrell
    • From Bolivar to Burrell
  • Millwood
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Millwood have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millwood
    • Millwood is located in Westmoreland County
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Seward
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Armagh
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Snyder
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Snyder have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snyder
      • Snyder is located in Indiana County

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Bolivar. See our List of 1890's Communities around Bolivar.

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Bolivar ...

An ongoing effort between the Library of Congress and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has resulted in the National Digital Newspaper Program (NDNP).

To share their results, the partnership has created the Chronicling America website. The goal of this partnership is to assemble a database about the current and historic newspapers of the United States. This includes a growing collection of scanned images from selected papers. All of it available to the public on their website.

Using information that we've taken from the Chronicling America website, we've identified 50 newspapers that have been published in the area around Bolivar.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Bolivar. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Bolivar and those printed in the larger area surrounding Bolivar.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 13 miles [20.9 km]<6> of Bolivar.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These helpful websites offer the information directly or else point to where you can find it. Their information is open to everyone.

To help you get started, the following links will take you to the pages that are relevant to Bolivar:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Bolivar. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Westmoreland County: www.co.westmoreland.pa.us/

The official website for Commonwealth of Pennsylvania: https://www.pa.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<4>The Find-a-Grave website is an excellent research tool with information about a cemetery's location and interments. They also offer a forum for their members which can provide additional help. More information about Find-a-Grave can be found on their website: findagrave.com.
<5>We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Bolivar, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Bolivar) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Bolivar. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 40.3948, Longitude: -79.1525    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 29 Apr 2025